Trunk.



No. 779,345. PATENTED 9991.9, 1995. M. B. BEHRMAN.

TRUNK. APPLICATION 3mm) APR. 7, 1904. i

'L11/ji .I f n ,1 MamusBBehrman 'U f @YW AYTOHNEYS Patented January 3,1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

MARCUS B. BEHRMAN, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

TRUNK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 779,345, dated January3, 1905.

Application led April '7, 1904. Serial No.1202,028. I

To all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, MARCUS B. BEHRMAN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, have made certain newand useful Improvements in rlfrunks, of which the following is aspeciiication.

My invention is an improvement in packing-cases-such, for instance, astrunks, dresssuit cases, shipping-cases, delivery-cases such as merchanttailors use to deliver clothing, cases for ladies wearing-apparel, andsimilar cases wherein it is desired to pack articles of clothing; andthe invention has for an object, among others, to provide a novelconstruction by which the clothing may be held from movement in the caseand may be preserved in the position in which it is placed in the case,so that itV will not move about and become wrinkled and otherwisedisarranged; and the invention consists in certain novel constructionstail section on about line 3 3 of Fig. l. Fig.

l is a detail perspective view of the presserbar, partly broken away atthe middle andu showing the spring devices at the opposite ends of suchbar. Fig. 5 is a detail perspectiveI view of one of the keeper-plates inconnection with aportion of the side of the case. Fig. 6 is a detailperspective view of the seatplate for use opposite that shown in Fig. 5,and Fig. 7 shows a somewhat different form of presser-bar from thatillustrated in Fig. 4.

While I have illustrated my invention in connection with a trunk-tray,it will be understood that I do not desire to be limited to such use ofthe invention, as it may be employed in other constructions-such, forinstance, as before referred to. I will therefore refer to theconstruction with which my invention is employed as a body7 or caseA,vintending body or case A is provided at one end with an upright seriesof hooks B for engagement by a clothes hanger-frame C, as shown in Fig.l.

At the opposite sides of the box or case I provide plates D and D, whichare alike, eX- cept that the seats CZ in the plate D are round openings,while the seats d in the plate D are slotted at D2, so that thekeeper-bar E may be inserted endwise at one end in the seats CZ and beslipped laterally at its other end into the seats d through the slots(Z2, as will be understood from Figs. l, 2, and 3 of the drawings. Inorder to space the plates D and D away from the sides of the case A, Isecure upright spacing-bars F to the inner sides of the case A andsupport the plates D and D on such spacing-bars F in such manner thatthe plates project beyond the spacingbars F toward the end of the body Aprovided with hooks B, so that the keeper-bar E will be securely held inthe seats (l and Z against movement toward the end of the case Aopposite the hooks B, as will be understood from Figs. land 2 of thedrawings. Below the plates D and D or on the side of said platesopposite the hooks B, I provide keeper-plates G g, one of which isprovided with undercut slots G, opening in the reverse direction to theseats CZ and arranged for engagement by the pivoted tongue andlatch-plate at one end ofthe presser-bar H, presently described, and theother, g, having openings g for the projecting tongue at the other endof said presserbar. These plates G g are spaced away from the innersides of the body or case A like the plates D and D and are preferablysupported on the inner faces of upright bars G2, whose outer faces aresecured to a base-plate G3, which is slotted horizontally at G* for thepassage of the clamping-screw I, which receives the nut I', the edges ofthe slot G* being slightly turned up at g4, forming ribs against whichthe clamping-nut bears, as will be understood from Fig. 5 of thedrawings.

By this construction the keeper-plates G can be adjusted longitudinallywithin the body or case A in such manner as to properly press upon thegarments of different lengths, as will be understood from Figs. l and 2of the drawings.

The presser-bar H is designed to press the garments firmly against thebottom of the case A or against the garments placed belovs7 them, andthis bar, as shown in Fig. 4, is constructed of spring or othermaterial, being preferably upturned at /L near its end and having theoutwardly-projecting end portions L and ft2, one end of the presser-barbeing provided with a tongue h3 to enter the seats g', and the other endof the presser-bar being slotted at if to fit on opposite sides of theseat-plate G and having at such end the latch-plate J which is lpivotedat J at one end and may be swung at its other end into and out ofengagement with the slots G in the seat-plate G. This presserbar H beingof spring material may be made to exert any desired pressure upon thegarments. The latch J has a thumb-piece J 2 near its swinging end andmay be readily adjusted into and out of alinement with the bar H in theuse of the invention.

It will be noticed that the presser-bar H is made of a length not inexcess of the space between the opposite plates G, so that when thetongue /t is inserted in the slots g of plate g the presser-bar may bebrought squarely down close to the inner side of the opposite slottedplate Gr and the latch J be swung from the position shown in Fig. 4tothat shown in Fig. l, in which it engages with its proper slot G. Bythis latch it will be noticed I avoid any swinging or horizontalmovement of the presser-bar upon the clothing and am able to bring suchpresser-bar squarely down upon the clothing in order to hold the same asdesired. Thus in securinga pair of trousers as shown in Fig. l thegarments may be properly folded into the desired creases and then foldedover the rod E and held at both ends beneath the presser-bar. Ladiesgarments may also be held from movement.

1n Fig. 7 l show a somewhat different form of presser-bar from thatshown in Fig. 4, the presser-bar shown in Fig. 7 having anupwardly-projecting spring-tongue L at one end and a pivoted latch M atits other end, the upper surface of the bar being grooved at M',adjacent to the latch M, to receive the said latch when the latter isadjusted into alinement with the bar and to lock the latch in the recessM' by the upward pressure of the clothing beneath the said presser-bar.

By providing the seats for the rod E and the presser-bar in verticalseries any quantity of clothing may be secured in the box or case andfirmly held from movement therein.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is4

1. The combination of the body or case, an upright series of hooks atone end thereof for engagement by aclothes hanger-frame, plates at theopposite sides of the case for engagement by the opposite ends of thekeeper-bar, the seats in one of said plates opening toward the end ofthe case provided with the upright series of hooks, the l eeperbarengaging the seats of said plates, keeper-plates secured to the case onopposite sides of said first keeperplates from the series of hooks, andprovided with seats opening in the'reverse direction to those in thesaid first plates, and a presser-bar provided at its ends with meansengaging with the seats of the keeper-plates, substantially as and forthe purposes set forth.

2. rlhe combination with a body or case, of akeeper-bar, plates havingseats for said keeper-bar, a presser-bar and plates having seats forsaid presser-bar, the seats for the keeper-bar being closed in thedirection of the presser-bar, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination of the body or case, a pair of plates having seats, apresser-bar arranged'to iit between said plates and having at one end atongue to engage with the seats of one of said plates, and a swinginglatch carried by the other end of the presser-bar to engage with theother seat-plate, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination with the body or case, and the opposite seat-plates,of a presser-bar arranged to lit between said plates, and provided atone end with means to engage with the adjacent seat-plate, and theswinging latch arranged to engage with the adjacent seatplate,substantially as set forth.

5. The combination of the body or case, side plates g having seats for apresser-bar, upright spacing-bars to which said side plates are secured,base-plates secured to said spacing-bars and slotted for the passage ofthe clamping devices, clamping devices for said base-plates, and apresser-bar having means for engagement with the seat-plates,substantially as set forth.

6. The combination ofthe body or case, seatplates adjustablelongitudinally within the body or case, means for securing theseatplates in different adjustments within the body or case, and thepresserbar having means for engagement with the opposite seatplates,substantially as set forth.

7. In an apparatus substantially as described the combination of thebody or case, a presser-bar of spring material having at one end apivoted latch swinging horizontal into and out of alinement with thepresserbar, and a vseat-plate in the body or case for engage- TOO IIO

ment by said swinging latch, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination of a body or Case, opposite seat-plates arrangedtherein, one of said plates having slots opening toward the adjacent endof the boX or case, a keeper-bar to engage said plates; keeper-plateshaving the seats of one plate opening toward the adjacent end ofthe bodyor ease and in the opposite direction to the slots of the otherkeeper-plate, IO and the presser-bar having means engaging with saidkeeper-plates, substantially as set forth.

MARCUS B. BEHRMAN.

Witnesses:

NATHAN BALSER, WALLER E. SMITH.

